It is a fascinating piece and Rifkin’s book of the same title is now on my summer reading list.

RSA Animate – The Empathic Civilisation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7AWnfFRc7g

Wow… Hat tip: Duck of Minerva

Click image for full size

I spoke to a great many protesters (learning too few of their names). I took hundreds of photographs and learned that in the future, I need to bring more memory cards for my camera; just on the off chance of revolution.

Much happened in Iceland since I last wrote.  Protests continued through the week, albeit with a relatively subdued tone.  A great many people are wearing orange armbands and scarves. I’m told that orange (Appelsínugulur) symbolizes non-violence, and change through peaceful, non-destructive protest.  It is a grassroots response to the violence of late Wednesday evening, which most protestors reject and called the work of a handful of drunk trouble makers.  Alda, of the invaluable Iceland Weather Report, writes that people brought roses and tulips to give to the police on Thursday, and that someone brought hot chocolate for police and protesters alike.  Almost everyone recognizes that the police are underpaid and suffering as much as the rest of Icelanders.

On Saturday, nearly 5000 people packed Austurvöllur to demonstrate.  Saturday also brought the news that Bjorgvin G. Sigurdsson, Minister of Trade, was resigning after dismissing the head of nation’s Financial Supervisory Authority.  Today brought the dissolution of the governing coalition and the fall of the Icelandic government, to be replaced by either a national unity coalition or a centre-left Samfylkingin lead coalition until elections in May.

Icelanders have successfully forced out the government through peaceful direct action.  They plan to continue protesting until someone takes responsibility for the corruption and economic mess.  The history of this runs deeper than a sudden collapse of the banks in October. Those that I’ve spoken with see this as the result of decades of unsustainable economic policies, crony capitalism, and a revolving door between the upper echelons of industry and the top of the political elite.  2008 is being called the year that neoliberalism died in Iceland.

Writing during the crisis, I attempted to keep my stories relatively objective.  I was never able to talk to anyone giving the government’s point of view, nor did I want to claim the views of the protestors as my own.  I don’t pretend to be a journalist, but all stories are complex and and it’s very easy to get swept up into he moment and lose perspective.  Familiar as I was with the situation prior to my trip, having experienced the day-to-day life of Reykjavík and these protests, I must say that I sympathize with the Icelandic people’s grievances.  Those notwithstanding, we should never be apathetic or cynical about the role our voice as individuals can play in governing, and we should never be complacent.  If I witnessed anything at all, it was the vibrance and beauty of a democracy functioning as it ought to.

The general view on the elections is that it’s a good start, but they want the government out now. They also are continuing to protest because after fifteen years of conservative rule, they feel as though the party has to answer for putting Iceland in this position.

I’ve also noticed that large numbers of people are wearing prominent orange armbands and scarves and the such. Apparently this is a symbol signifying non-violence. The majority of the people here want these demonstrations to continue peacefully.

More on all this tomorrow!

Eventually, the American public reached a point where gas prices were at “crisis” levels. At this point people did something they tried to avoid for as long as possible. Changed their habits. People started driving less. Sales of trucks and SUVs fell. Sales of the Toyota Prius increased to the point of having to wait months to get one. People started using less electricity. They basically conserved. This was a shift in the behavior in an entire culture and when that particular culture uses 25% of the world’s oil, its change can have a massive impact. It also leads to today.

Gas prices have now dropped to under $2 a gallon around here and the impact has been an increase in demand right? Of course not. That would make this story both too simple and uninteresting. Demand has actually continued to drop. We’ve now reached the point where OPEC has decreased oil production once and is considering doing it a second time. It seems like most economists are quick to blame the recession but as this entry would imply, I do not think it is anywhere near that simple. The shift that I see is one that has had a deeper impact in how we do things as Americans. Many Americans want to see a change in how we get our power for both electricity and transportation. I guess the real question is when will we reach the price where things shift back the other way? When does it become cheap enough monetarily to overcome a change in will?

I see a few possible reasons why gasoline prices have remained low. I’m skeptical of both of them, but not outright opposed either.

I see a few possible reasons here.

1) Global Warming as an externality is finally impacting the consciousness of the American public and as a result there is some recognition (intuitive perhaps) of the collective action problem that is driving consumer choices. He mentioned as much.

2) Individuals are actually making rational choices. Previously they were stretched past their limit and relying on credit cards to pay for gasoline. They’re now saving even more money on gasoline then they did by cutting back, but with all other things remaining relatively static, they’re still feeling tight on money. Perhaps the collapse of the financial sector and the housing crisis have people convinced it’s in their short term self-interest to pay off their credit cards rather than traveling.

Any other ideas? Maybe it’s a bit of both?